In conventional mouthpieces for musical wind instruments, such as clarinet mouthpieces, for example, the foot portion of a bamboo reed is affixed to a support surface in the mouthpiece casing by means of a ligature. The blade of the reed protrudes above the top of the mouthpiece casing with the tip of the reed blade disposed proximate the leading edge of the casing.
The width of the gap between the tip of the reed blade and the top surface of the leading edge of the mouthpiece casing is an important factor in determining the quality of sound produced by an instrument having a mouthpiece of the type described. Nonetheless, prior art mouthpieces have the disadvantage that the width of reed tip-casing edge gap is not adjustable. As a result, musicians are often forced to purchase different mouthpieces and must experiment for a long time before finding a mouthpiece with which they are comfortable.
Another disadvantage of conventional mouthpieces is the difficulty encountered by a user desiring to change a reed. Reeds have a relatively short life and must be frequently replaced. The ligatures which fasten the reed to the mouthpiece casing are inconvenient to remove and subject to breaking when doing so.